While staying at the Humani Ranch in Zimbawbwe, a man enjoyed a peaceful night's sleep, remaining blissfully unaware of the 8-foot crocodile hiding under his bed just inches away from him, New Zimbabwe reports.
Guy Whittall, a former Zimbabwe cricket captain who serves as a director for the family-owned lodge, had spent the night at Humani Ranch and slept for a solid eight hours. It wasn't until the next morning when he heard the maid scream that he discovered the large reptile hiding under his low-lying bed, and realized it had stayed the night with him. He even remembered hanging his feet off of the bed in the morning, getting ready for the day, unaware that the crocodile was just inches away from his toes.
"The really disconcerting thing about the whole episode is the fact that I was sitting on the edge of the bed that morning, barefoot and just centimeters away from the croc," Whittall said to New Zimbabwe. "Crocodiles are experts at hiding, that's why they have survived on Earth for so long and why they are the ultimate killers in water. They know how to keep quiet and go unnoticed, it's in their nature. The crocodile came from the Turgwe River which is a couple of kilometers from the house. They often wander about the bush especially when it's cold and raining. I think he liked it under the bed because it was warm."
After the shocking discovery was made, Whitall and animal control workers worked together to evict the crocodile from his new resting spot and guide him into a nearby river, a process that was far from easy. The team had to rope the 330-pound crocodile's snout, and covered its eyes to try an calm it down during the moving, according to the Telegraph.
"Of course he resisted being roped and hauled out from under the bed, that's only natural," Whitall said. "Catching and securing a croc of any size on land though is a fairly straight forward affair and we are experienced in that. The only real danger is getting bitten because it can't drown you. The most important thing is to get its snout roped and secured and then it's just a matter of restraining it and covering its eyes, to calm it down. Bigger crocs require more manpower obviously though. When roped they thrash around frantically and are extremely powerful. I just remember thinking goodness gracious, that's one for the books. I'm pretty sure everyone in Humani checks under their bed before going to sleep now anyway."
Click here to see photos of the unexpected crocodile guest that Guy Whittall encountered, including a picture of the animal control team hauling the croc off to a nearby river, its natural habitat.
